“Life is so uncertain.” This phrase from a song playing softly on the car radio interrupted my thought while I was driving early one morning. Thinking about this for a few minutes I wondered, “is it?”

Is the genetic code the only determinant of health?@Glowimages /

I could see where some might feel a lack of certainty in their life, Things happen – to jobs, relationships and health - and we don’t know why. So we assign them to chance. Some resist this feeling by falling into habits that create some perception of predictability, like regular schedules and routine activities.

But another way to look at it is that nothing happens from “chance”. We just don’t know why or how. We’ve learned that there are a lot more reasons things happen than we once realized, especially when it comes to our health.

Environmental factors are thought to play a key role in one’s health. But there are also types of physical conditions that just don’t seem to be related to the environment, at least not the environment “out there.”

Geneticists report almost everything about us, including our health, is determined by the code built into the double helix of our 25,000 genes.

But we might ask ourselves the question, “Is it possible that we have more control than we thought?” Cell biologist Bruce Lipton thinks so. His research has shown that the environment can have an important effect on the expression of genes regardless of the “code.” He says quite emphatically, “Genes are not destiny!”

“If you believe in inflamed and weak nerves, you are liable to an attack from that source. ...If you decide that climate or atmosphere is unhealthy, it will be so to you. Your decisions will master you, whichever direction they take.

Reverse the case. Stand porter at the door of thought. Admitting only such conclusions as you wish realized in bodily results, you will control yourself harmoniously.” (SH 392)

At one time in my career I had tremendous responsibilities that others considered to be a pressure cooker of stress, a common source for many health problems. My conscious decision to not view this work as stressful and to not expect negative health consequences, however, allowed me to handle these duties effectively without any sense of stress or ill health.

I’ve learned that a relationship with the Divine, nurtured and expanded through prayer, has a tremendous calming effect. As a result I stay healthier when I keep a calm focus on health, as an outcome of my relationship with God, being normal and predictable.

John is a columnist on health and thought. He works with the media and legislature to give a fair and accurate representation of Christian Science to the public. In his previous career he was a captain with the Lane County Sheriff’s Office.